Sports News-April 10, 2013

The Connecticut women made it look easy in the Big Easy. U-Conn ruined the Louisville women's dream of trying to equal the Louisville men's team's national championship by routing the Cardinals 93-60 to win its eighth national title. The eight titles ties UConn with Tennessee for most women's NCAA basketball titles. The 33-point margin was the largest in an NCAA women's championship. Freshman Breanna Stewart led UConn with 23 points and nine rebounds. Only one school has won the men's and women's national basketball championships in the same year. That was Connecticut in 2004.

The New York Knicks romped to their first Atlantic Division title since 1994, getting 36 points from Carmelo Anthony and beating the Washington Wizards 120-99 last night for their 13th straight victory. Anthony put this one away with 21 points during the Knicks' 37-point third quarter that gave them a 95-71 lead. The NBA's scoring leader added eight rebounds and six assists while becoming the first Knick since newly elected Hall of Famer Bernard King with five straight 35-point games. Iman Shumpert added 18 points for the Knicks, who negated a height disadvantage by tying a franchise record with 20 three-pointers. J.R. Smith and Chris Copeland each added 17 points. John Wall scored 33 points for the Wizards, who gave the Knicks way too much shooting space on the perimeter and lost their tenth in a row at Madison Square Garden.

The day after Louisville won the national championship, the father of Russ Smith says the Louisville junior guard will leave school to enter the NBA draft. Russ Smith, Jr. said his son will announce his decision in the next week. During Smith's stay at Louisville, he and his fellow Cardinals shared in the national championship and two Big East titles and he was an all-conference first-team selection this season. Smith averaged 18.9 points this season including 23.3 in six NCAA tournament games.

Kobe Bryant fueled a desperate rally with 23 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter, and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the New Orleans Hornets 104-96 last night to keep their slim playoff hopes alive. Pau Gasol had 22 points and eleven rebounds, and Dwight Howard added 19 points to help the Lakers move a half-game ahead of Utah for the eighth and final Western Conference playoff berth. The Jazz lost to Oklahoma City 90-80 earlier in the evening. Eric Gordon scored 22 points, making 10-11 free throws, before fouling out in the final seconds to lead five Hornets in double figures. Anthony Davis added 18 points and 14 rebounds, Ryan Anderson had 14 points, and Greivis Vasquez had eleven points and eleven assists.

The Creighton men's basketball team is ranked 21st nationally in the final USA Today Top 25 Coaches Poll that was released yesterday. They went 3-2 against teams that finished in the top-25, including a pair of victories over fourth ranked Wichita State. Louisville, Michigan, Syracuse, Wichita State, and Duke rounded out the top five. Individually, Creighton’s Doug McDermott led the country in points scored with 834 and field goals made with 284. The junior forward was also second in points per game, 18th in free-throw percentage and 37th in field goal percentage. Senior guard Grant Gibbs ranked 13th in assist/turnover ratio and 22nd in assists per game.

The Wayne State softball doubleheader with Southwest Minnesota State that was scheduled for today at 2:00 has been moved to Thursday at 2:00. The Wayne State baseball team was scheduled to play the University of Mary in Bismarck, North Dakota today and those games have also been moved to Thursday with game one of the doubleheader beginning at 1:30.

The Wayne State women’s outdoor track and field team remains 14th in the latest United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association NCAA Division II National Team Computer rankings released yesterday. The Wildcats are one of five teams from the Northern Sun Conference listed in the rankings. The Wayne State women have four athletes ranked in the top ten nationally in six events. Senior Lachel Milander is second in the hammer throw, junior Carly Fehringer is fourth in the hammer and sixth in the shot put, junior Emily Wells is eighth in the hammer while sophomore Sara Wells is fifth in the shot put and sixth in the discus.

Local Schedule: Nfk Cath at Ewing Inv. (BG-Ppd. To April 17); Air Force at Creighton (Bsbl-3:00); Kansas St. At Nebraska-Omaha (Bsbl-6:00); Omaha Storm Chasers at Albuquerque (Bsbl DH-5:05).